Space Adventures announced yesterday that space tourist Charles Simonyi will take a gourmet meal to the ISS next month to share with the crew. The six-course meal includes quail roasted in Madrian wine, duck breast ‘confit’ with capers, shredded chicken parmentier, apple fondant pieces, rice pudding with candied fruit, and semolina cake with dried apricots. The meal was prepared by Alain Ducasse, a French chef, in cooperation with the French space agency, and was selected by Martha Stewart, who is Simonyi’s “friend”, as the press release diplomatically puts it.

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports that the New Mexico Spaceport Authority has endorsed a lower price tag for Spaceport America, the new commercial spaceport the state plans to build in southern New Mexico. The facility, previously estimated to cost $225 million, is now expected to cost “only” $198 million. The primary factor in the reduced cost is the removal of one of two runways originally planned for the spaceport. Not having a second runway doesn’t jeopardize the operations of the spaceport, and it can be added later if there’s sufficient demand. The announcement comes two weeks before voters in three counties go to the polls to vote on a tax referendum that would help pay for the spaceport. Releasing the new cost estimate for the spaceport now is intended to demonstrate “that we’re on track and that we have a cost estimate that meets the conditions that were set,” said Rick Homans, director of economic development for the state; one of the conditions set by Doña Ana County earlier this month requires the spaceport’s cost not to exceed $225 million. Early voting on the referendum has already started in the county, with about 1,500 people casting ballots in advance of the April 3 election.